Finding a comprehensive collection of tips is quite hard for developers who want to do outstanding work in GitHub and Git, but we are here to fix that. The available guides for these two version control systems not very helpful as they offer limited information. We will begin by giving a quick overview of what this is all about, then proceed to the main subject.

The Linux kernel community helped Linus Torvalds write the original version of Git in 2005, which was a distributed version control system. Later on, Git came up with a command-line tool that was compatible with Linux kernel community systems, which started GitHub. Using the Git command line is possible, if you choose to. Applying GitHub for hosting gives you free service on Mac and Windows. The Git command line comes as an inbuilt feature in Linux and Mac systems, and is applicable with all hosts.

TortoiseGit (free for Windows), GitBox or SourceTree (free for Mac and Windows) might interest you if you like GUI. You can still make use of an IDE or editor, which internally supports Git.

Are you looking for someone to help you out with your version control systems project? Visit freelancer.com, and enjoy quality and affordable services from our experts.

Git and GitHub tips for you:

Clone Anything

Public Git repositories such as GitHub provide many great projects that you could pick and clone to your computer. That will teach you many things concerning practice, interesting language tools such as comment style for commit log, and coding styles.

Cloning will also help you wrap your mind around means of achieving the objectives of each project. Incorporating your product and your attempts at the project would help them make sense, and increase your productivity. However, licensing needs close scrutiny to ensure full compliance and avoid possible confrontations with authorities and other developers.

Each remote tracking branch gets updates from a plain Git fetch, which has no arguments. The Git pull merges the available branch master with the remote master.

Git Pull Frequently

One of the things that will cause you trouble, no matter which version control system you use, is when your synced files disintegrate and move out of alignment. Frequent Git pulling will help you keep track of code changes, which makes things easy when it comes to merging and understanding codes. The main idea here is to know your project’s status. To help you remain updated, most Git clients let you know when anything new comes up.

Commit Often and Early

A few changes are necessary to your files in terms of granular project updates. A change of this nature is what we call a commit, which is basically a record made on completion of a unit of work. It is advisable to commit every completed logical change prior to testing. This has no far-reaching adverse effects, as any commit only applies to the local repository.

Comment on Your Commits as Others would Do to Theirs

Some coders comment their commits while others do not. It is extremely annoying when your commit lands on logs within the "xx" order. This is especially true if you believe the changelogs are not as important as the in-line comments, and the codes should look exactly as they are. You will realize that using accurate commit logs is likely to give you the best results.

Push for Changes Testing

There is an unfortunate story about a company that failed to train developers on how to distinguish between centralized and distributed source controls, even after shifting from Subversion. The project developed strange bugs after only a month, and no one was able to track them. A blame game ensued amongst the developers, with some claiming they already fixed the situation, but their colleagues failed to pull Gits.

They closed the matter when one of the team unearthed the problem, and taught the rest when and how they ought to push commits - for every successful locally-built commit test. The company was able to create and deploy an integrated and updated product after a merge test that lasted two days.

Branch Freely

Some of the advantages Git offers developers over other version-control systems are that it uses the most suitable common merge ancestor, and its mergers work smoothly. Your project needs the more frequent creation of branches, possibly on a daily basis. This will help reduce emergency meetings you might need when things suddenly go south.

It takes some effort to make adjustments, but the benefits are worth it. Only minor challenges should occur once the branch project is ready to merge with the main project, if you observe this tip diligently.

Watch Projects

You will automatically become interested in what goes on upstream once you fork a project. In that case, you can view the repo and later unwatch it if the chatter annoys you. You should merge and fetch all upstream commits if you see changes that are likely to affect your work negatively.

Merge Carefully

Git merges usually work without hitches, but careless mistakes may lead to difficulty in later stages. You need to put your work in order before you apply external changes.

If things go wrong while merging, you will be safe. You can always safely recover through git merge - abort.

Switch Branches after Stashing

Most of the workflows you will come across for software development are non-linear. You might find it necessary to change whatever you have been doing midway, with users reporting bugs after every step, or changing ways for your manager who wants to go in another direction.

At some point, you will find yourself stuck with tasks that run concurrently, and dropping one might not be a good idea when you consider the consequences. A dirty directory might even make things worse for you - but you need not worry, because there is a solution.

Input git stash to save all changes in a branch where work in progress (WIP) goes. With a clean directory, you can now try accessing the production branch. Once you are through, use git stash applies to return to where you began.

Share Pastes and Snippets with Gists

Although GitHub “gists” do not belong to Git, they still use it as shared code snippets. They are easy to share with GitHub as they are all Git repositories. Searching for public lists, you can filter by starred status, forked status, and programming language topic. It is also possible to develop and share a private gist by using a URL.

Explore GitHub

Explore GitHub is a feature that helps you find open source projects, most of which have GitHub repositories through the provided interface. It is easier to find them by typing the name of the project, or several letters of its name. For instance, typing back, ang or jq will help you with one of the main JavaScript open source frameworks.

Make Contributions towards Open Source Projects

It makes sense to do something that will improve any open source project, because you also use them. In the process - which is not as difficult as you may think - you will gain a lot of knowledge. There is a big difference between a committer and a contributor. A contributor signs an agreement before making their project contribution available, while a committer has the opportunity to put their proffered input in the project.

Once you have these guidelines at your fingertips, you will be set to produce the best quality work as a developer. Commit to practice and improve, in order to make yourself an expert in this field.

Did you find the information in this post useful? Leave us your feedback in the comments section below.